Magic Bites (Editing)

Chapter 9: Ties to strong

Over the next fortnight Caleb, Anna and to Eric’s surprise Jeremy made frequent visits.  Caleb would help mostly with his studies that Vincent was happy to see excel since Eric had nothing else to do while confined to the cabin.  The speed at which Eric was progressing also pushed Caleb who Eric found hated to be second best at anything.  Together they covered two months worth of work in those two weeks.  Vincent even said that he could magically lock them in the cabin for a longer time so that they could finish their apprentice training in the next week.  After two full weeks trapped in the cabin though was enough for Eric, he just wanted back outside.

Jeremy mostly came on his guard duties and talked about live as a vampire and a lot about Alexander.  Apparently a vampire is able to send and receive messages through blood and that’s how he and his brother were keeping in touch.  Jeremy was great company when you forgot what he was and then without realising it Eric blurted out a question that he had been die-ing to ask.  “How do you walk in the sun?”

For a while Jeremy just looked at Eric, then he started to answer “That’s a piece of over exaggerated information that one vampire let slip years ago.  Vampires don’t burst into flames in the sun or skin burns like everyone else but thanks to our fast healing attributes we can get really exhausted.  Garlic’s a myth too, that one mad vampire made up to lure want-a-be slayers into his fort during the darker days, stakes on the other hand is completely true, but it has to be wood that’s the only thing that can fatally wound vampires, something about the minerals in the wood prevents us from healing.” He finished “Don’t tell anyone I told you that” Jeremy added fear sparking in his eyes for less than a second.

“Ok” Eric replied unsure of Jeremy’s sudden reaction “so how many vampires are there?”

“Twenty-two” Jeremy answered placing his elbows on the table and rubbing his hands through his hair. 

“That’s all” exclaimed Eric “I read there used to be hundreds”

“Someone’s been killing us off” Jeremy cut in “there’s a link between each and every vampire, sometimes when I sleep I can see what some of the others are at and no matter what I’m doing I can always feel when one has died.  It is like we’re all tethered together by invisible ropes.” Jeremy paused for a while, withdrawn into himself remembering some horror Eric was unaware of “when one of us dies the rope disappears”

At that moment Vincent had walked in and Jeremy bid them good night “it has been a while since I last feed and the Haunt have been quite for a while now, so I shall see you at a later date Eric.  Good night Vincent”. Again Jeremy left the house like a ghost travelling noiselessly with the wind. 

The visits from Anna were the ones Eric looked forward to more than the others however.  She would arrive and knock on the door with three rasps in time with the beats of Eric’s heart.  Her hair was tied back now into a braided ponytail hanging over her shoulder, her blue eyes the size of the moon and her soft lips a scarlet red. At the start Eric couldn’t answer the door without his heart pounding against his chest drowning out all other sounds, when he opened it he would always find a new way to embarrass himself without fail causing Anna to laugh.  For the most part they sat and talked, about what, Eric couldn’t really remember but always gave her his full attention.

One day as the night got older and cold treated to freeze the world outside under a cape of snow. They lay in front of the fire in his room on top of the quilt he threw down on the ground for them to lie on. She moved in a little closer and placed her head on his chest, instinctively Eric wrapped his arms around her.  For a while they just lay there talking about the arena, Anna’s family, mostly her younger sister, Vincent, then without warning she wriggled up to his height and kissed him.